Cousins in the Country

This weekend my cousin Becca and her son Theodore came up for a visit.  It was really neat to see Teddy all grown up at almost 11 months, and having a baby in the house was good training for me, Abe, Lily and Paws. Ted is incredibly happy and good natured so he makes having a baby look really fun, but we still all got a taste of the good, the difficult, and the exhausting.

I was so insanely proud of little Lily.  She's a really sweet dog, but can get a little sassy. We've been nervous about how she will react when our baby is born in November, but this weekend she proved that she's ready to become a big sister.  Teddy was in LOVE with Lily and couldn't keep his hands (or entire body) off of her.  Lily took all his affection like a champ and didn't get upset when Ted's little baby hands grabbed a handful of fur or whacked her in the nose. All her patience was rewarded by the piles of Cheerios underneath Teddy's highchair and lots of baby face licking.

I ❤ My Cat

The title of this post should come as no surprise to anyone who knows me.  My new I ❤ My Cat zip pouches are now available in my shop!

Secret to getting your beloved cat to participate in a photo shoot?  Lots of compliments and lots of beef flavor crunchy treats.

Behind the Scenes at Wicked Mint

No fabric is safe when Mr. Paws is around.  

 

Behind the Scenes of Our 2011 Holiday Card

One thing I always suspected, but now is confirmed?  Mr. Paws does not mind wearing a costume for a photo shoot.  In fact, he get a real kick out of it as long as the dog stays downstairs and there are plenty of treats on hand.

A Camping We Will Go

Our friends (and owners of Lily's best dog friend) are having a baby in a few months so we decided to squeeze in a weekend camping trip before their lives change forever.  We had to put in a little research to find a dog friendly campground reservation between us in New York and our friends in Washington D.C., but luckily Pennslyvania State Parks has a really great website that makes the job easier.

We saw hot air balloon races as we left the Hudson Valley.

We spent hours watching the dogs play, chasing Lily around the campground after she chewed through her leash (three times!), and cooking really delicious dinners over an open fire. 

Adam shows off his nighttime tent toilet.

Ohhh those poor dogs have such a hard life! Poor neglected babies.

On our way back to New York we made a pitstop at Becca and Alex's house in Pennsylvania.  We saw them at our wedding, but hadn't seen their kids in over a year! They were a little weary of bouncy Lily when we arrived, but by the end of the visit they were helping me walk her around the yard and giving her commands.